


Until Eternity

by katypery



Category: Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog (Cartoon), Sonic X, Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie Comic), Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW Comics), Sonic the Hedgehog (Video Games), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: A very Sonic-style story, Accidental Revelations, Action, And another one in the ending notes, Canon-Typical Violence, Displays of affection, Emotional Attachment, Fistfight, Fluff, Friends With Benefits, M/M, Making Out, Races & Chases, Rivalry, Romance isn't dead, There's a little surprise in the end
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-12
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-12 06:41:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29380797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katypery/pseuds/katypery
Summary: An unexpected revelation leads to an unforeseen decision. After an intense encounter with his notorious rival, Sonic the Hedgehog is determined to take one step forward that may change his future forever.This story is for teen and up audiences. Mentions of canon-typical violence, implied sexual content and foul language.I do not own the characters in this story. Sonic and Shadow belong to the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, as well as other mentioned characters.© SEGA / Sonic the Hedgehog (1991–present)
Relationships: Shadow the Hedgehog & Sonic the Hedgehog, Shadow the Hedgehog/Sonic the Hedgehog
Comments: 24
Kudos: 44





	Until Eternity

**Author's Note:**

> Love is in the air, my friends. And here I am with another Sonic and Shadow story. However, this one is a little different. It’s kind of funny, isn’t it? Me writing a story without any explicit sex scenes. Unrealistic, I know. But I’m sure you’re going to love it. This is my special Valentine’s Day gift for all of you who left kudos, bookmarks and comments in my previous stories. Enjoy this little treat!
> 
> For those who are not familiar with my previous works, considering they’re intended for mature audiences only, here’s an innocent recap: Sonic and Shadow have been friends with benefits for over 10 years in this story. Yes, they do have feelings for each other. No, they don’t view said feelings as infatuation. And personally, neither do I, because what they feel transcends regular love.
> 
> This work follows canon and other media elements, save for the events of the Sonic Boom universe. This story is meant to happen after Sonic’s upcoming Sonic Prime series and his long awaited 30th Anniversary video game. Please refer to my notes on “Something in Between” for context, but do not read the story unless you’re 18 years old or over, as it contains explicit sexual content and mentions of alcohol consumption and casual smoking.
> 
> Sonic the Hedgehog is 32 years old in this story.

**UNTIL ETERNITY**  
_And a Thousand Years More_

Sonic opened his eyes slowly, letting out a yawn in the process.

Apparently, he was lying on his side with an arm outstretched under his soft pillow, as his lower body was covered by one of his favorite bright red bed sheets. His windows were open, curtains letting rays of sunlight welcome the hero to another glorious sunny day. It was Monday again. Sonic wasn’t sure when he got asleep, but a faint discomfort in his lower back reminded him how exactly he had slept the night prior. Suddenly memories of last night’s pleasant adventure came flooding him like a volcano in eruption.

It was a great comparison. Because he remembered black and red fur and an unbearable heat.

They’d had sex all night long. It was a challenge they were both used to: the one who lasts longer wins. He didn’t remember how many orgasms he had had, but he recalled each one of their building ups. Sonic smirked, turning his body to face Shadow’s favorite side of the bed, now empty. An ungloved hand brushed over the wrinkled sheets, gripping and raising them to his nose. The blue hedgehog closed his eyes as he inhaled deeply. They still smelled like him.

Sonic decided it was time to come back to reality. Enough of Shadow, enough of sex. He had a long day ahead. The blue blur had to meet up with Tails in their shared house located in Emerald Town, taking into account he had stayed the night in his personal apartment. The two friends had been collecting the seven Chaos Emeralds for the past week. The last emerald – the red one – remained hidden from Tails’ radar, making the process take longer than they originally intended it to.

The hero was sure they were going to find the last emerald that Monday, but first, he had to take a shower. He was stinking of dried cum and sweat and sporting a few lovebites here and there. Before he moved, though, he grabbed his smartphone from the nearest nightstand to check the time. ‘Maybe it’s too early to start the day,’ Sonic pondered lazily.

He had regretted doing that. It was noon. He was supposed to be at their chosen rendezvous point _three hours_ ago. Tails had called him several times since then.

“Oh, shoot!” Sonic threw himself out of the bed so fast he hadn’t noticed the little disturbance on the floor.

A loud metal clanking sound was heard as soon as Sonic’s ankle collided with the unseen hard object. His eyes widened and he cried out in pain. Shadow’s rocket shoe was laying haphazardly in the middle of his bedroom. It looked like his rival was still around somewhere in the apartment.

“Fuck! Fuck!” Sonic’s hands held his ankle protectively while he bounced using his opposite leg on the pristine floor. He was aware he looked like a Splat, a bunny-alike robot he had encountered plenty of times in Press Garden Zone. Annoying little shits.

As if it wasn’t enough, the culprit had showed himself. Shadow slowly opened the bathroom door, with a toothbrush hanging loosely in his mouth and a yellow towel wrapped around his waist, black and red quills slightly dripping and moving as their owner turned his head to check on Sonic. He was almost done brushing his teeth. As soon as they made eye contact, Shadow quickly smiled around the spare toothbrush, his mouth full of toothpaste foam. Sonic fumed at the view.

“Son of a bitch!” Sonic furiously caught Shadow’s air shoe from the floor and threw it in his direction. It had hit the bathroom’s door, since Shadow had swiftly closed it right before his shoe came in contact with the wooden surface. Another metal clank was heard and a nasty scratch was left on Sonic’s door.

The blue hedgehog could hear Shadow chuckling on the other side of the door. It didn’t really matter. He had an important mission, so he needed to be in peak condition as fast as possible. Nonetheless, Sonic decided to ask for the other’s help against his will.

“Grab me a salve! Quick!” Sonic exclaimed.

His rival was fast to obey. Sonic sat on his bed and hissed as Shadow emerged from the bathroom with an ointment in hand, towel already gone. It looked like he had brushed his teeth in record time too. The black and red hedgehog sat beside him and held Sonic’s leg by his calf, carefully placing his injured ankle on his lap. Sonic tried to get the salve from the other’s hand, but he received a slap in return. Shadow started applying the cold substance on his newest bruise and massaging his ankle as the hero groaned and muttered a few ugly words.

“Unbelievable,” Shadow pointed out, shaking his head and ignoring Sonic’s insults aimed at him.

“It’s your fault! Why did you leave that shit in my way?” Sonic raised his voice, but Shadow seemed unfazed.

“I was taking a shower, you moron. I didn’t know you would wake up and start running around like an idiot.”

Sonic pouted and complained a little more until Shadow was done taking care of his stupid injury. His rival stood from the bed and started collecting his gloves and rocket shoes from the random places he had thrown them overnight. Sonic sat upright and crossed his legs on the mattress, getting his phone from the nightstand again to notify Tails he was going to arrive in a few minutes. He didn’t tell him _why_ he was late, obviously.

“Did you eat anything?” Sonic looked over his shoulder. Shadow was already dressed in his regular attire, staring out the window with his arms crossed over his chest.

“No. I was informed that something I ordered had just gotten manufactured, so I have to pick it up now.”

“Oh? And what is it?” Sonic turned his body to glance at Shadow properly. The hero had a mischievous grin on his face.

“It’s none of your business, hedgehog,” Shadow replied bitterly, glaring at him with his eyes narrowed.

Sonic snorted and shook his head, turning his back to Shadow and waving a hand to dismiss his foolish reply.

“Right. Take care, then. I’ll see you around, dude.”

Sonic heard footsteps getting nearer. He was checking the notifications on his smartphone when he was surprised by a heavy gloved hand on his shoulder and a brief, sweet kiss on his lips. Sonic blinked and Shadow kissed the tip of his nose before disappearing in a flash of light. He blinked a few other times, thick eyelashes batting rapidly, and laughed to himself, shaking his head again.

“Weirdo,” he said with a fond smile on his muzzle.

After devouring his breakfast and getting ready for the day, Sonic left his apartment as fast as he could. The blue blur had promptly met Tails outside his workshop in Emerald Town, receiving an earful for being _fashionably_ late. When he had settled things with his angry li’l bro, they got in the Tornado, flying straight to Mystic Ruins. It seemed like they were wrong about the place, since Sonic spent the majority of his afternoon searching the area without any success. Tails’ radar had showed them an approximate location after all. Upon noticing the ample region appearing on the digital map, the fox genius had asked Sonic to get on board again so they could head to Station Square instead.

It had been a while since they last visited the city, which had always brought Sonic some good memories, even if its streets had been flooded at some point. Tails fumbled with some colorful buttons on the red plane’s panel and a dark green screen showed up, his familiar radar coming to life again. Indeed, there was a Chaos Emerald hidden in the vicinity, as a little white dot kept twinkling in the somewhat empty map.

“Can you feel it, Sonic?” Tails inquired, piloting the plane to overfly farther areas. As soon as they flew towards Speed Highway, the heroes witnessed gunfire and clear signs of combat.

Sonic and Tails were in the right direction. Some of Eggman’s famous badniks had been causing havoc in the streets below, terrorizing citizens and stopping _already slow_ traffic. Surprisingly they were being attacked by someone, who wasn’t exactly part of the police, seeing the lack of policemen and choppers near the long highways. Funny how they wouldn’t show up when actually needed. Sonic couldn’t see the stranger clearly, but he could feel the emerald’s presence somewhere in the middle of the conflict.

“I can feel it! Tails, fly back to the main city, it’s not safe here! I’ll get the emerald!”

“Be careful, Sonic!” the yellow fox yelled through the slight turbulence.

Then Sonic jumped off the plane, flying among endless skyscrapers and looping highways. The hero landed gracefully in one of the crowded highways and proceeded to rekindle his role in the battle, avoiding bullets and destroying robots with powerful homing attacks, spin dashes and stomps. He had noticed he was fighting alone, as the heroic stranger was nowhere to be found. However, it wasn’t long until they showed up again, punching a considerably large hole in the robot leader’s mid-section with their own fist, removing the Chaos Emerald that Sonic had been looking for from its metallic core.

“Shadow?!” Sonic shouted incredulously. Was he looking for the emerald too? Shadow hadn’t told him about any kind of mission he had been assigned to that day, but then neither did he, so it was probably a coincidence or irony of fate they had met again so soon.

Shadow heard his voice and looked down from the place where he had been standing. It seemed like the robot was moments away from exploding if taking the smoke coming from its core into consideration.

“Not you again!” Shadow complained.

Said hedgehog sprinted to the opposite direction, Chaos energy powering his rocket shoes as soon as he finished his sentence. The blast coming afterwards had given him a few seconds of advantage, granting a certain distance between his figure and the nosy blue hedgehog.

A chase was never enough for them.

Sonic ran after him, decreasing their distance in a short period of time. They dodged cars, transit plates and pedestrians at full speed, breaking the sound barrier. The hero felt himself smiling, following Shadow’s yellow blur like a paradise trail. The weather was great too, not too hot or dry for an impromptu race. His rival noticed how he boosted forward on his tail, catching up with him in a matter of seconds.

“I’m gonna catch ya!” Sonic announced through the harsh wind.

“Eat my dust!” Shadow ran faster, Chaos energy almost overflowing his metal shoes. He threw a Chaos Spear in Sonic’s direction as an attempt to slow him down. It didn’t work, however.

“I’d rather eat something else!” Sonic easily dodged his badly thought-out attack and grinned. The two heroes were heading towards an enormous skyscraper that seemed to never end, its summit disappearing in the clouds above.

Shadow smirked at Sonic’s shameless rebuttal, failing to notice the blue hedgehog boosting right behind him. When Sonic grabbed his upper arm with a ‘Gotcha!’, Shadow recovered by hovering on the ground with another boost from his air shoes, conceding him a significant distance between them again. Sonic saw Shadow running up the skyscraper, so he did the same, running behind his target closely, although his voluptuous speed and heavy footsteps left a continuous trail of broken glass windows. Truly a loss for the businessman who owned that luxurious skyscraper looking like an office building mixed with a five-star hotel.

“Fuck you!” Shadow cursed over the loud sound of thin glass continuously shattering. Sonic wouldn’t give up no matter what happened around him.

“Fuck _me_ yourself, slowpoke!” Sonic loudly retorted with a smirk, finally closing the gap between them.

Shadow held onto the emerald in his left hand and shouted a well-known command. He was tired of this pathetic cat and mouse game.

“Chaos Control!”

Time stopped with Sonic running up in slow motion, an outstretched arm touching the spot his rival had previously been. Shadow jumped, twirling mid-air until Sonic slowly passed him, giving enough room for his rival to land a precise roundhouse kick on his head, sending the blue hedgehog flying inside one of the apartments in the high building. The glass windows shattered in a thousand pieces, sending shards everywhere in and out of the room.

Shadow got inside, landing heavily on one knee while he supported his body with a fist on the floor, emerald securely hidden in his quills. It looked like the residential apartment was empty of its dwellers, save for a few lights left on in the kitchen. The hedgehogs had broken the large windows of the master suite, an expensive-looking room vastly decorated with dark wooden furniture. Shadow saw Sonic moving against the tilted dressing table, its drawers severely damaged thanks to the hero’s sharp blue quills. He slowly got up and laughed, mocking Shadow’s desperate reaction upon losing the chase.

“Fighting dirty as usual,” Sonic tsked, feigning disappointment and spitting a little bit of blood on the floor.

“I fight to win,” Shadow replied determinately while cracking his knuckles.

“What about a challenge? No homing attacks and no Chaos powers. Just a good ol’ fistfight between guys. You down, man?” Sonic tilted his head slightly with half-lidded eyes and an expectant smirk on his muzzle. His posture was incredibly relaxed, as if he knew he would be the winner.

“You’ve already lost, Sonic,” Shadow got into a fighting stance, smirking back at his opponent. He never backed down from a challenge. 

“We’ll see about that,” Sonic chuckled and stretched his limbs, jumping a little in the process.

As soon as the two powerful hedgehogs got ready, Shadow waited for an opening to attack. Sonic winked at his rival and called him to fight by curving his palms and fingers towards himself a few times in a taunting manner, mouth opening to let out a single phrase in an uncharacteristically deep voice.

“Come and get me, babe.”

The fight was on. Shadow launched himself at him, his fist meeting air as Sonic dodged his attack easily. The hero punched him in the ribs in the meantime, making Shadow grunt and kick one of his blue legs. Sonic staggered, so Shadow grabbed him by his head quills and landed a successful punch on his face, making his opponent back down until his quills touched the wall behind them. Shadow tried punching him in the face again, but his fist met the concrete, leaving an ugly hole in the once gorgeously painted wall when Sonic rapidly got away from his grip, switching places with his rival.

The blue blur jumped on Shadow’s back, strong legs swiftly entangling themselves around his chest from behind as Sonic pulled his neck into a chokehold. The black and red hedgehog clenched his teeth, trying to keep his breath steady, and gripped Sonic’s arm with both hands, running backwards until the hero’s back collided with a big vertical mirror in the opposite wall, breaking it instantly due to the heavy impact. Sonic groaned, feeling some of its shards piercing his back, and let go of Shadow’s neck immediately after triumphantly retrieving the red emerald from his head quills.

In the middle of the tussle, Shadow caught Sonic from behind, pulling him into a headlock with an arm and restraining his right wrist – the one holding the emerald – behind his back with the other. Sonic’s free hand came to grip Shadow’s forearm as his rival pressed his torso on his back, tightening his hold on both Sonic’s arm and neck.

“Hand it over. Now,” he ordered through clenched teeth.

“Never,” Sonic answered breathlessly.

“I’m going to choke you,” Shadow whispered in his ear, threatening the blue hedgehog.

“You know I like it rough,” came the retort, and Sonic moved.

Letting out a battle cry, Sonic crouched and strongly pressed his lower back on Shadow’s groin, back quills brushing against his stiff abdomen. He lifted the other using his back and threw him forward as soon as Shadow lost his ground, spinning in the air and landing harshly on the misplaced coffee table, destroying its fragile legs. Shadow screamed in pain when his back collided with the hard wood and broke it in half.

Unbeknownst to them, an adorable couple was sitting on their queen-sized bed in the bedroom under the one their battle was taking place. A woman and her husband had raised their eyes to the ceiling upon hearing pained groans and loud banging, as well as glass shattering and furniture being dragged around. A particularly guttural male moan made the husband flinch. They had no idea what was actually going on, so the woman lowered her gaze to her husband in a disappointed manner. The man, who had stopped reading a novel, spectacles sitting comfortably on the bridge of his nose, gave her a confused look and she averted her eyes, silently insinuating he wasn’t doing his job as a man properly.

Sonic and Shadow weren’t using any specific techniques, nor friendly sparring either. They were engaged in a full-on brawl consisting of heavy blows, treacherous kicks and quill grabbing. Their rings were leaving their bodies whenever they were hit, neither being able to recollect them as they swiftly disappeared in the air. Shadow had managed to drag Sonic by his quills to the untouched kitchen, slamming his head on the counter multiple times while pulling him sideways to the sink, hearing the metal clank of the tap as it broke when Sonic’s hard forehead was slammed on it, water splashing everywhere and spilling on the tiles.

Without Shadow noticing, the blue hedgehog had grabbed a pot lid lying next to the sink and hit him in the back of his head with it, making the other lessen his hold on his quills and stumble backwards. Sonic then changed their positions, slamming the pot lid in his head plenty of times – a comical noise could be heard whenever the metal lid collided with Shadow’s head. Upon hearing his rival’s grunts, Sonic threw the lid somewhere else and kicked his butt with the sole of his trademark shoe, making the other’s body hit the large refrigerator, kneading its doors as fruits and milk gallons fell from their shelves.

They were both panting desperately. Many bruises and cuts could be seen on their darkened fur, glinting with sweat and bits of blood. Sonic slowly walked towards Shadow and he was met with a strong kick between his legs, making them buck beneath him. His hands instinctively moved to his crotch as an unbearable pain made itself known. Sonic closed his eyes tightly and fell to the ground, screaming and cursing Shadow more times than he deemed necessary.

“Damnit, Shadow!” he moved to rest his battered body next to the scratched kitchen counter while the black and red hedgehog slowly got up from the destroyed refrigerator.

“Won’t be fucking me for a while, huh?” Shadow smiled deviously as he approached the hero, white teeth stained in bloody red. He threw the shiny emerald up and caught it in the air – he had taken hold of it again in the middle of their incessant battle.

On the floor with a hand between his legs and back pressed against the counter, Sonic roughly kicked the side of Shadow’s kneecap with all of his strength, making his rival cry out in pain. His leg bent and Sonic took the opportunity to launch himself at him in a sprint. He threw both of them over a table located in the master suite, its contents falling on the previously undisturbed floor. Vases and glass cups went flying, breaking upon contact with the sleek tiles.

Sonic pressed his entire body on Shadow’s, sweat and blood staining their once clean fur. Skin brushed against skin as the hero bent him over the table with his back on the flat surface. One of Sonic’s knees went up to pin his rival’s injured leg on the edge of the table so he wouldn’t kick or move, while his right forearm was rammed firmly across Shadow’s neck. The black and red hedgehog had his teeth bared and gripped his upper arm in a failed attempt to lessen the pressure on his windpipe. Sonic held Shadow’s right wrist with his left hand and slammed it against the table countless times while keeping his balance with a foot on the floor. Still, his opponent wouldn’t let go of the emerald no matter how hard he restrained him. What a stubborn man he was dealing with. 

“Drop it, Shadow!”

Then Shadow spat on his open mouth, warm saliva mixed with blood dripping from Sonic’s lips to his chin, staining the black and red hedgehog’s chest fur under him.

They stayed like that for a while, panting and looking into each other’s eyes, until Sonic licked his lips, tasting Shadow’s fluids. His rival gazed at him, the pressure on his neck had lessened, but he wouldn’t dare move. Instead, he kept watching Sonic’s tongue cleaning his lips, with half-lidded red eyes and mouth slightly open, panting silently in exhaustion and expectation.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” Sonic warned once he poorly cleaned the mess in his mouth.

“What are you going to do with me?” Shadow smirked, voice sounding huskier than before their fight had started.

Sonic’s mouth curved upwards and he did the inevitable. He pulled Shadow into a fierce kiss.

The hero had removed his arm from his rival’s neck so he could hold his head tenderly as they kissed. Shadow’s eyes fluttered shut as soon as their lips met, his free leg moving to wrap itself around Sonic’s waist as he deepened the kiss. Sonic let go of his wrist, moving his hand to Shadow’s back and manhandling his body until he was sitting on the edge of the table. The red emerald fell from his grasp, but neither of them seemed to care about it anymore. Holding onto Sonic’s shoulders, Shadow felt the hedgehog’s firm grip on his thighs, carefully placing his injured leg around his hip. They could feel their hearts beating against each other’s chests in the close proximity, their feverish challenge long forgotten.

It wasn’t supposed to end like this, but Sonic couldn’t resist. What he felt for that hedgehog transcended their intense, hot-blooded rivalry. He just couldn’t get enough of him, no matter how hard he tried. It looked like the need was mutual, considering how Shadow melted in his arms without a second thought. 

If it was wrong, then why did it feel so _right_?

When Sonic was about to lay them back on the table, his communicator went off, startling both hedgehogs. Shadow broke the kiss, looking around and breathing heavily, as if he had lost his surroundings for a moment.

“Argh!” Sonic let go of Shadow’s thighs and pressed a button on the communicator in his wrist, accepting the call as he walked away from his rival.

“Sonic! Are you okay? Did you get the emerald?” Tails asked, clearly concerned.

“Hey Tails, everything’s fine. I found it,” his voice sounded a little raspy so he cleared his throat.

“Great! Where are you so I can pick you up?”

“Actually, about that… can you go home without me? I’ve got a few things to do first,” Sonic turned around and winked at Shadow.

“Okay! Call me if you need anything.”

“I’ll see ya soon, buddy!” Sonic ended the call and chuckled a little. He loved Tails, but sometimes he contacted him in the worst of times.

“I hate you,” Shadow stated while fixing his disheveled head quills. He stood up from the table and landed on the floor with a thud, recovering the glinting Chaos Emerald in the meanwhile. He stared at the red rock unamused.

“There was a time I would believe that,” Sonic laughed, approaching his rival while licking his lips. “Now I’m not so sure, dude.”

“Here. You can have it,” Shadow tossed the gem in Sonic’s direction.

“What? Then we fought for _nothing_?” Sonic caught the red emerald mid-air, a suspicious frown finding its way on his face.

“I just needed an excuse to beat you up,” Shadow limped past him, eyeing the city below from the broken glass windows. “By the way, you’re welcome.”

“And why would I thank you? For giving me a black eye?” Sonic followed him and they stood side by side. It was late afternoon now.

“A robot enemy was aiming at your plane earlier. I took it out before it killed you and your little fox friend,” Shadow crossed his arms over his chest, gaze casted forward.

“Really?” Sonic stared at him cheerfully. He had a big smile on his face. Without thinking, he placed an arm around Shadow’s shoulders, gripping his opposite shoulder firmly. “I can’t believe you saved both of our asses! That’s why I love you, Shadow!” he chuckled and slightly shook Shadow, who turned his head to regard him with a blank expression.

Then Sonic gulped, his laughter dying in his throat.

“Oh, shi– I didn’t mean– I– Not in a weird way, damnit!” Sonic stammered, trying to fix something that didn’t need to be fixed.

Shadow kept staring at him, mouth gradually curving upwards. He looked like he was trying really hard to suppress a grin or a particular witty remark.

“I know,” Shadow casually said along with a low chuckle, failing to hide his grin, little fangs showing themselves. He slapped Sonic on the back twice in acknowledgement.

Sonic realized he hadn’t let go of him yet, so he rapidly removed his arm from Shadow’s shoulders. The hero didn’t know if his rival said he knew he hadn’t meant _that_ , or if he simply was aware about _what_ Sonic didn’t want to admit in the first place. Either way, the blue hedgehog wasn’t going to ask Shadow to elaborate on his answer. He had started sweating nervously all of a sudden anyway.

As if on cue, the police showed up, sirens alerting their unwanted presence. Sonic thought it was ridiculous, because they’d been the reason why the lawmen had _finally_ decided the city was in danger, seeing the mess they had caused on the way to the building they were currently hidden in. However, Sonic felt a bit nostalgic about the situation, recalling glimpses of the day he had first met Shadow. It had also been tumultuous, since the police had appeared unannounced. Except that this time he wasn’t going to jail – and if he did, Shadow was going with him.

“Anyway, let’s get outta here!” Sonic placed his hands on his hips, one of them still holding onto the emerald. He shyly averted his eyes from Shadow and continued. “Can we stop at the nearest drug store? I’m gonna need something to bandage my arm, it stings like hell,” Sonic handed the Chaos Emerald to his rival so he could teleport them somewhere else.

That room felt strangely warm for some reason.

The two speedy hedgehogs had landed in a drug store pretty close to the main city. The sun was almost setting, so Sonic thought it would be nice if they stayed to watch the sunset, its pink and purple colors making the sky look like an ethereal painting. However, they currently had something else to take care of: their wounds. Sonic and Shadow sat on the floor in one of the store’s isles, quietly opening bottles, getting bandages and other first-aid kit materials to tend to their bruises and cuts. They helped each other, Shadow wrapping gauze around Sonic’s bleeding arm as the other massaged his injured kneecap, applying a transparent salve using his free hand.

“Stop moving, damnit,” Shadow whispered so they wouldn’t get caught by customers and employees, considering they weren’t planning to pay for anything.

“What’s going on in here?” a middle-aged man asked. He was wearing a white uniform – one of the employees they were trying to avoid at all costs.

“Shit,” Sonic muttered under his breath. “Hey! This is not what it looks like!”

“Sonic the Hedgehog?! What happened to you and your friend?” the man seemed to recognize the hero, looking from angry to concerned. He watched the two battered hedgehogs with a look of pity and compassion.

Shadow scoffed. It seemed like being called ‘Sonic’s friend’ felt extremely disrespectful somehow.

“We, uh… fell! Yeah, we fell,” Sonic lied, trying to reassure the man.

Strangely, the man had believed them. Even weirder, he had led them to one of the doors behind the counter thus they could be helped by some employees in the back of the store. Sonic and Shadow kept glancing at each other with slightly googly eyes, saying nothing. Once they were properly bandaged, the middle-aged man showed up again, holding out two lollipops in his hand – one strawberry flavored while the other was a mix of chocolate and cherry.

“You two have been really brave! Here’s a lollipop, kids!” the man smiled, unironically believing the two tiny hedgehogs to be children.

Sonic was snickering lowly at Shadow’s reaction when they both got one lollipop, his rival’s eyes narrowing in incredulity and rage. The blue hedgehog thanked the good old man for his sympathy and assistance. He suppressed his laughter as Shadow left the drug store unwrapping his lollipop and putting it in his mouth – he had gotten the chocolate and cherry flavored one.

Two grown men being mistaken as children. Only in Station Square it seemed.

Sonic and Shadow walked to one of the benches turned to the vast ocean near Twinkle Park, granting them a wonderful view of the sunset. A mix of orange, pink and purple painted the evening sky as the last rays of sunlight dissipated. They sat side by side on the bench while licking their respective lollipops. Sonic’s arm was resting on the back of the seat, his fingers subtly caressing Shadow’s upturned quills without being noticed by humans passing by them. The hero sat lazily with his legs wide open while the other’s posture was upright, black and red legs crossed as a foot dangled back and forth. The silence was comfortable, and Sonic could feel his rival leaning into his touch slightly.

It was Shadow who broke the silence.

“I don’t really need this,” Shadow admitted, placing the red emerald on Sonic’s lap.

“Then why didn’t you just hand it over to me?” Sonic picked it up, securing the brilliant rock in his head quills. He took a glance at Shadow as he licked his lollipop.

Shadow turned his head to regard him with half-lidded eyes and a playful smirk on his tan muzzle. He removed his lollipop from his mouth and spoke.

“And what’s the fun in that?” he said with an annoying high-pitched voice, meaning to sound like Sonic.

“Shut up! I don’t sound like that!”

The hero laughed out loud and slapped Shadow on the arm, not really wanting to hurt him, but the other flinched, hissing a little. Sonic kept muttering ‘sorry’ while softly caressing his rival’s sensitive upper arm, since it still had a few nasty bruises. The two settled to talk about trivial things, Sonic recalling a few adventures he had with his team as Shadow listened to him mindfully, nodding whenever Sonic gave out information about upcoming schemes of their enemies in common. Then, the blue hedgehog decided to speak of his friends, gossiping about their recent doings as he knew Shadow wasn’t exactly in the loop.

“I used to joke about you being Knuckles’ brother-in-law whenever we would talk about his relationship with Rouge. Dude seems to like ya friend a lot, y’know?” Sonic said, throwing his lollipop stick in the nearest garbage bin. 

“Does he plan to ask for her hand?” came an unexpected question as Shadow did the same, his stick landing perfectly in the middle of the trash can.

“I dunno. Those two are complicated,” Sonic scratched his head and turned his eyes to the sunset, grinning. “I told him to finally make a move, like he used to tell me all the time.”

He was met with silence, so he decided to elaborate on that one.

“You see, me and Knux sometimes talked about marrying you guys,” he chuckled a little, eyes still casted forward. “We still do, y’know? Just for fun,” then he finally looked in Shadow’s direction, unexpectedly making eye contact with him. “I mean, our arrangement has been going on for what, 10 years now?”

“12 years tomorrow,” Shadow corrected him.

“Seriously? Damn, you still remember? I barely recall what day it was when we had our first night. I only knew it happened a couple o’ days after my 20th birthday,” Sonic confessed with a fond smile.

“I never forgot,” Shadow said quietly, turning his amber-ish red eyes to the blue ocean ahead.

Sonic followed his gaze and noticed how the sky had considerably darkened, but it still was bright enough to illuminate the city and all the buildings around them. He felt Shadow’s hand carefully touching his thigh, resting there. Sonic moved his body a little bit closer to the other, keeping in mind they were in a public space.

“Have you thought about it?” Shadow asked all of a sudden.

“About what?” the hero briefly glanced at him.

“Marrying me,” Shadow squeezed his thigh slightly and waited.

“Well, I… yeah,” Sonic finally confessed. There was no point in denying it. “Never thought I’d tell you this one day, ‘cause it is so cringe,” he snorted and looked at Shadow quickly before averting his eyes again. “But then again, it’s not like you’d _actually_ agree to marry me, heh.”

“Yes.”

“See? That’s what I’m talking abou–“ before Sonic finished his sentence, Shadow interrupted him.

“I would’ve said yes.”

Sonic slowly turned his head to regard his rival, who had a tiny smile on his face. He seemed extremely calm. The blue blur’s eyes widened slightly and his mouth felt dry as a desert.

“Wait,” Sonic blinked a few times, removing his arm from the back of the bench. “Are you…? No way you’re telling me this just now,” he laughed nervously and lowered his gaze to where Shadow’s hand had been resting.

“Haven’t I agreed before?” Shadow asked, raising an eye ridge while maintaining his eyes fixed on the hero.

“You mean when I–“ Sonic looked around and lowered his voice, noticing pedestrians in the sidewalk near them. “When I gave you that cock ring?” 

Shadow smiled and bashfully lowered his eyes, squeezing the blue hedgehog’s thigh once again. 

“You never fooled me with that shit, Sonic,” he chuckled and waited for the other’s reaction.

Sonic remembered when he had gifted Shadow a golden cock ring on his birthday. He wanted it to feel like an inside joke between them, but in reality, Sonic had done that just to test the waters. See where they stood with one another. He was incredibly shocked when Shadow actually agreed to his fake proposal. At that instant, it had felt more than pleasing. It had felt like all those years _kind of_ together had been worth it, as well as the many other years that had passed since then.

Silence again. Sonic realized he probably was looking like a teenager boy who had just been caught jacking off in the closet. Shadow smirked and continued, noticing his rival’s lack of remarks.

“Did I surprise you?”

“No, I–“ Sonic shook his head and started searching for something in his head quills. “Damn, Shadow, the shit I go through for you…”

Amused, Shadow snorted when Sonic couldn’t find whatever he had been hiding there. He waited for a few seconds until the blue hedgehog got whatever he had been looking for, holding it inside his fist before resuming their heart-to-heart talk.

“You know how I say we always have to grab onto at least _one_ ring?”

“Yes,” Shadow replied, trying to guess wherever Sonic was going with this.

“Then there you’ve got it. My last ring,” Sonic presented a bright golden ring using his thumb and index finger to his rival. “Kinda lost a lot when you kept throwing me around back in that building, but anyway,” the hero awkwardly shook the ring in front of Shadow. “A decent proposal.”

Shadow blinked and stared at Sonic, shifting his gaze from his face to the ring in his hand, then back to his face again. He crossed his arms over his chest and narrowed his eyes.

“Aren’t you going to get down on one knee?”

“For what? I’m not gonna blow you, dude,” Sonic frowned and looked at him skeptically.

As if Sonic would get down on one knee to ask a guy for his hand. He’d rather save the bruises on his knees for later – that was, if he still had the stamina to see where this day would end. Considering how things went between them, Sonic would rather settle for a good night’s sleep while cuddling with his rival instead.

Shadow uncrossed his arms and let them rest on his lap, running a thumb over the inhibitor ring around his left wrist.

“It’s your only ring,” he sounded strangely worried.

“Look Shadow, if I had to give it up, I would do it for you,” Sonic said sincerely. He was tired of pretending not to care about his friend. “So, what’s gonna be? Wanna skip the boring dating phase and marry your favorite rival?” the blue hedgehog smiled, waggling his eye ridges.

“My _only_ rival,” Shadow smiled back and presented his left hand, palm turned down. “And I thought it was obvious by now.”

Sonic grinned and took Shadow’s hand, stroking his knuckles with his thumb. After a quick glance around them, he swiftly slid the shiny ring on his rival’s gloved finger, the object rapidly disappearing in a faint yellow glow with a familiar sound. The ring had turned into energy, making Shadow feel it as it became part of his body. Sonic lowered his head and placed a prolonged kiss on the finger where the ring had previously been, making eye contact with Shadow all the while. The black and red hedgehog had a fond smile gracing his usually stoic expression.

“Nothing’s gonna happen to me. I’m too fast! ’Sides I got _you_ to cover me until I get more rings on the way. I told you I die hard,” Sonic squeezed his hand in reassurance and let it go, feeling himself lighter.

“It turns out you were faster than me. Again,” Shadow averted his eyes from him and placed a hand on his head quills, searching for something too.

“I’ve always been faster than you, Sha–“ Sonic stopped talking as soon as he saw a little blue velvet box in Shadow’s hand. “What’s that?”

Shadow ignored his question and began opening the tiny box, revealing a golden ring with a beautiful ruby gemstone, very similar to the red emerald he had retrieved from the robot’s core that afternoon. Sonic kept staring at it as Shadow removed the ring from the little ring box.

“It’s your ring. I picked it up today.”

“Wait! That’s not a regular ring…” Sonic began, not really sure how to continue. His eyes wouldn’t leave the ring, which seemed to glow in Shadow’s hand.

“No,” the black and red hedgehog said, placing his palm under Sonic’s left hand. “It isn’t.”

It was an engagement ring. Sonic could see it clearly now. Shadow was twirling it a bit between his fingers, but the hero noticed there was something engraved in the inner side of it. From what he could read, it simply said ‘Lead me out with your light.’ His rival didn’t think twice before sliding the ring on Sonic’s gloved finger, kissing the back of his hand when he was done. Sonic’s mouth was slightly open, he kept glancing around them and noticed pedestrians weren’t around, so he decided to show Shadow his sincere appreciation.

“Shadow, it’s beautiful,” he raised his left hand to his line of sight and grinned, laughing breathlessly. “I love it.”

Sonic quickly pulled Shadow into a hug, holding him as if he was going to disappear at any second. To his surprise, Shadow returned the hug, wrapping his arms firmly around his back, regardless of them not being completely alone. It felt innocent enough, hence why Sonic didn’t care if anyone ended up snapping a photo or two. When they separated, Shadow held on to Sonic’s hand, intertwining their fingers on his lap. He glanced around them and saw a few people passing by, not really paying attention to the two hedgehogs, but still being inconvenient enough to what he wanted to do. Shadow scoffed, his mouth curving in disgust.

“Pathetic humans…” he said, before stopping time with a Chaos Control.

Shadow didn’t teleport them somewhere else. In fact, he didn’t need to go anywhere. He was right where he wanted to be. By Sonic’s side. Everything around them stopped, cars and people frozen in the picture, so Shadow moved his hand to brush a thumb on Sonic’s cheek, kissing him slowly afterwards. Sonic closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around Shadow’s waist as the other proceeded to deepen their kiss. They stayed like that for a while, kissing under the dark purple sky of an unusual evening. One Sonic would make sure not to forget.

The world had stopped. Like it always did when they kissed.

When the two hedgehogs parted, it all went back to normal. They removed their hands from each other’s bodies and pretended like nothing had happened, except for the happy expressions on their faces betraying their world-known rivalry. Sonic laughed a little before asking Shadow a very important question.

“How come your lollipop is tastier than mine?” 

“That’s because you were tasting _me_ ,” Shadow smirked mischievously.

“I wouldn’t mind tasting you again,” with half-lidded eyes, Sonic approached him, before his sweet plans were interrupted by another beeping from his communicator.

“Goddamnit,” he cursed and accepted the call. “Tails?”

“Sonic! Knuckles is here. Can you buy some grapes and mint candy from the supermarket?”

“Yup, I’ll be home in a bit,” he looked at Shadow and the other rolled his eyes.

“Alright! See you later!” Tails cut the call, seeming busy with whatever Knuckles had made him do.

“I gotta go, Shad,” Sonic stood up from the bench, presenting a palm to help Shadow up.

“Go back to your friends,” his rival took his hand and stood up, crossing his arms over his chest.

Before Sonic turned to the direction of his and Tails’ house, about to head to the nearest market, he approached Shadow, placing a hand on his forearm.

“Actually… can I go to your place later? I’ll find a way to ask Knuckles to get Rouge outta there.”

Shadow snorted and nodded. Sonic’s hand moved to caress Shadow’s cheek with the back of his index and middle fingers. Shadow leaned into his touch, relaxing in the other’s presence. Then Sonic kissed his cheek, letting go of him.

“Bring champagne,” Shadow said when Sonic turned to head to Emerald Coast, walking towards a hotel where a Chao Garden was located. The black and red hedgehog was grinning.

Sonic looked over his shoulder and winked. When Shadow warped away, the blue hedgehog shook his head and smiled. It all felt surreal, as if it was another one of Infinite’s illusions. He was engaged again, but this time, he wouldn’t need to change anything in his ordinary life, save for preparing a wedding to the same level as the Ultimate Lifeform. He was genuinely happy after proposing to Shadow. He couldn’t wait to tell Tails and Knuckles, making fun of the lovesick echidna for being slower than him. Sonic was faster than everyone, even though it took him a little over a decade to gather the courage to finally move on.

He had no idea where this decision would take him. But it didn’t really matter, as long as he was with Shadow until the end.

**Author's Note:**

> You have to agree with me, nothing is more romantic than Sonic and Shadow beating the shit out of each other and proceeding to chill on a bench while watching the sunset. Do you think that’s enough? No, they also had to awkwardly propose to one another after years dancing around their feelings. That’s it, that’s them. Just two rivals pretending to be unaffected by the other’s presence. Hilarious, huh? What a nice friendship they have.
> 
> Is there anything you’re curious about? As my loyal readers know, I love writing my stories in a subtle manner as not to give away much information directly. After all, that’s how Sonic and Shadow’s canon relationship works: there’s something unsaid between them, since they like to show their mutual respect in actions rather than words. Therefore, don’t be afraid to reach out to me if you’re interested in some trivia. The next story to this universe will be the day it all started, so I’d consider “Until Eternity” the calm before the storm. Here’s a little spoiler: it all starts with this, a lonely night out in Casinopolis. If you’ve read “Something in Between,” you’ll know what I’m talking about. It’s going to be pretty intense in my opinion, so stay tuned to good ol’ katypery in the tags!
> 
> I’ve written the fistfight (and making out) scene while listening to Boom by X Ambassadors, from the Sonic the Hedgehog official movie soundtrack. The chase was written with the lyrics of Goodbye by Imanbek in mind, so consider these two songs as the action sequence’s background music! Also, since some of you seem to enjoy my music taste for some reason, please take a listen to End of the World by Epik High once you’re done reading this story.
> 
> As usual, you can message me on Tumblr (self-titled blog or @galsgeneration, where I make Sonic Boom gifs) or on Twitter (ask for my user privately!) if you want to know more about my thoughts on these characters or just talk to me in private. Don’t forget to tell me what you think of this story in the comments! Your reviews are priceless. Kudos and bookmarks are very appreciated too. Happy Valentine’s Day! XOXO, katypery.


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